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Hathorn & Kramer Discuss The NCAA College Cup
11/25/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
As the 15th-ranked Duke women's soccer team prepares for its NCAA College Cup quarterfinal match against second-ranked UCLA, GoDuke.com sat down with senior forward Kelly Hathorn and senior defender Sheila Kramer to talk about the NCAA College Cup and their upcoming contest. Duke will play at UCLA on Saturday, Nov. 29 at 7:00 p.m., in Los Angeles, Calif.
GoDuke.com: How thrilled are you to make it to your second straight Elite Eight?
Kelly Hathorn: Obviously for any team that's a great accomplishment just to advance one time. Doing it two years in a row is definitely an amazing feeling. I think you could see it on the team's faces after the win. Everyone was all smiles, we were all smiling, Robbie [Church] was even a little bit emotional about it. It was a big win, we really came together against Virginia, we worked hard for each other and I think we are all just really proud to be where we are heading next Saturday.
GoDuke.com: What has been the key for the surge at the end of the season the past two years?
Kelly Hathorn: I think the key is really just trying to keep things in perspective and knowing that, yeah, we started in August but this is the reason why we started so soon. This is why we worked so hard. This is what the ACC prepares you for, it's one of the best conferences in the country and that just prepares you to go into the second season feeling confident and believing in yourselves. And I think that's really what we do best at this time in the year, is keep in mind what we've done throughout the season and just knowing that we can beat anyone if we show up and play.
GoDuke.com: What is the impact of having KayAnne Gummersall back this season?
Kelly Hathorn: It has been unbelievable for our team. Playing a lot of games last year without KayAnne and then playing this year with her, I personally have seen a big difference. It really just makes everyone else's lives easier that she is having such a great year and that she has been finishing so well. Obviously, we couldn't be happier for her and as a team it has been huge for us this season.
GoDuke.com: It's not just KayAnne and Elizabeth Redmond who have produced this year. Other teams have to prepare for all of the offensive weapons...
Kelly Hathorn: Yeah, I think that basically is the biggest strength of our team is the depth that we have. It's not just one or two superstars, it's always a whole team effort, it's always the people starting the game, the people coming off the bench. Everyone has to show up every single day for our team to be successful and I think we have done a really good job of that this year.
GoDuke.com: How proud of you are Cassidy Powers and what she has done this year to help the team in goal?
Kelly Hathorn: Obviously with everything she has been through we are obviously supporting her every single step of the way. We are so proud of her. We definitely couldn't have done this without her, and the way that she has been playing. She has responded really well to the positives and negatives of her play and the team's play throughout the season. I think she has really matured a lot throughout her college experience and going into this senior year she has really stepped up for us.
GoDuke.com: What is this team going to need to do to be successful this coming Saturday night in California?
Kelly Hathorn: I think we are just going to need to play with a lot of heart and play for each other, the same thing that we did last Saturday against Virginia. Just being confident in ourselves and believing that we can go into this and win it and just have fun while we are out there.
GoDuke.com: What kind of thrill would it be to conclude your career going to a Final Four?
Kelly Hathorn: It would be amazing. I guess every athlete dreams of the national championship and in order to get there you've got to get to this Final Four first. I think for me too, on a personal note, I kind of grew up playing around the area so for me to go home to the WakeMed Soccer Complex and finish my career there would be nice icing on the cake, I guess you could say.
GoDuke.com: How thrilling was it to go into Virginia and get a 2-0 win and make it to your second straight Elite Eight?
Shelia Kramer: It was so exciting. We had so much confidence going into the game and you could just tell; it was just like a feeling. Everyone had the atmosphere, it was just very upbeat. Everyone was on the same page and we just went out there and got it done, plain and simple. We played together, we played as a team, we were really energetic, and we had a lot of confidence. Virginia, because we had seen them one time before, we ended in a 0-0 tie, so we knew that we could play with them and definitely beat them, so I think we kind of just rode that wave all the way through and just ended up with a great result.
GoDuke.com: You returned a lot of players, especially on the defense. You haven't really started any games this year but you have played very key minutes. You knew it would take a mentality like that, not worrying about your own minutes. How key has that been this year, everyone playing as a team and not worrying about themselves?
Shelia Kramer: Absolutely. There are no egos on this team from top to bottom, minutes played; everyone is just totally committed to everyone else. And we are a really tight-knit group and I think that really shows, you know, whether you play 90 minutes or you are just cheering your team on. We are really a cohesive unit and we really work for each other. Whether I'm in there for 15 minutes a game or I have to step in there and play a lot of key minutes, I'm just there to help and do whatever I can to get the result. And that's really what happened at Virginia, everyone did that together.
GoDuke.com: How big has Cassidy's play been for not really seeing any action her first three years?
Shelia Kramer: Yeah, she has been so impressive from day one until now. Coming in with everything that happened to her and being able to step in and fill somebody's shoes like Allison Lipsher was just so impressive. It's not an easy position, I mean not being able to play a lot of minutes for three years and then stepping in for someone who played such a role for us for her four years here, I think really speaks a lot about her character and her talent. She has played great, has made really key saves, has been really consistent and has been a huge part of our success so far.
GoDuke.com: What about the defensive unit. Since losing Ashley Rape, Meaghan FitzGerald has really filled in for her gap and really hasn't missed a beat. What has been a key for this defensive unit?
Shelia Kramer: I think for the defense as a whole, even from the beginning we really didn't see any people as starters and non-starters, even starters didn't treat people who were non-starters very differently. We all play together, we all practice together, and we would fill in during practice or in games. That has really been our mentality from day one, we have all kind of had a little bit of competition but in a healthy way to kind of push each other and be there for each other and know that if someone went down or maybe had a bad game we would be there to back each other up. And that really shows on the field. We really trust each other; we know we can get it done, any person, whether it is a starter or a non-starter we all feel really confident and comfortable with one another when we play and I think that really shows.
GoDuke.com: What is this team going to have to do to be successful this coming Saturday in California?
Shelia Kramer: I think just keep doing what we are doing; I think we really found our step and our flow right now. We had a little bump at the end of the road in the ACC season. I think mainly we were tired, but now I think we are fresh and energized. It's the most exciting time of the year, especially being a senior knowing that this is our last time and we have a really core group of seniors that are so ready to just go all the way with it I think. UCLA is a great team, obviously, they are undefeated, a couple of ties, being on their home field over there. But I think at this point we are scoring, we are shutting people down defensively. They have some great players. But for us, it's just too mainly focus on us which is when we have done the best we have been concentrating on ourselves and not on the opponent so much.
Players Mentioned
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